Wee abs loose trio vastly overrated!

Can you credit this the entire ab loose trio was selected by the fans for a world 15. Thankfully only five abs were selected so it could have been worse. Chuck out at least wee macaaaw and messam. Duane is better than read as well. Carthorse conrad!!!!!!!!!!!!! Davies long before conrad!!

So perhaps one abs would have been okay?

Le Roux before halfpenny. Carter can do the kicking after all. Habana should also have made it. Rugby fans lack rugby acumen! Five SA players and one wee abs would be a fair assessment

Extraordinary!

New Zealand number eight Kieran Read's fine year continues to get better after he was voted player of the year by the game's international fan base.

Read won the award at the Ultimate Rugby International Rugby Players' Association (IRPA) Fans' Awards to top off his fine year where he also won the IRPA's inaugural rugby Players' Player of the Year Award, the IRB World Player of the Year title and New Zealand's Kel Tremain trophy as their best player for 2013.

The Crusaders stalwart had stiff competition for the fans' award but in the end he beat out Wales full-back Leigh Halfpenny and Irish back-row Sean O'Brien.

Fans took a different view to the players, however, when it came to naming their World XV. Only five All Blacks made the side. The back row trio of Read, Richie McCaw and Liam Messam are joined by fly-half Dan Carter and outside centre Conrad Smith.

Wallabies scrum-half Will Genia was a surprise choice ahead of All Black counterpart Aaron Smith for the number nine berth.

Genia said he was thrilled to be recognised by the fans.

"It's great the fans have been invited to participate in these awards," he told Fairfax Media. "They're such a vital part of the international rugby machinery; it's good to see they have a chance to have their say.

"And, of course, I'm doubly pleased they've included me in their World XV."

In other surprises, fellow Wallaby Israel Folau was preferred at right wing to New Zealand's Ben Smith while another All Black, Sam Whitelock, was pipped to one of the second row positions by Alun Wyn Jones of Wales.

IRPA officials said tens of thousands of rugby fans voted for their Player of the Year and World XV via the Ultimate Rugby app, as part of IRPA's first annual awards ceremony.

Fans' World XV of the Year: 15 Leigh Halfpenny (Wales), 14 Israel Folau (Australia), 13 Conrad Smith (NZ), 12 Jean de Villiers (South Africa), 11 George North (Wales), 10 Dan Carter (NZ), 9 Will Genia (Australia), 8 Kieran Read (NZ), 7 Richie McCaw (New Zealand), 6 Liam Messam (NZ), 5 Alun-Wyn Jones (Wales), 4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa), 3 Adam Jones (Wales), 2 Bismarck de Plessis (South Africa), 1 Alex Corbisiero (England).

 Beeno

As a realist there is no way that any of our back row players were better than their New Zealand counterparts.   One has only to look at the games between the AB's and Springboks to see the difference.

*   They made their tackles - matter of fact double the number of tackles made by the SA loosies.

*    They showed speed and strength by scoring 3 tries at Ellis Park.

*    They are not handicapped by defence - deficient and clumsy players like Sloth 

The best SA loosie is no doubt Vermeulen - but in all sincerity he is probably the second or third best no 8  in world rugby.   Louw would struggle to be in the top 5 opensiders and Sloth will not make the top 10 blindsiders. 

The Aussie back row shined against us because they are far ahead of us in performances and our back row is unbalanced and to a substantial degree ineffective.  

 Beeno

I was only dealing with the loosies - not the other players.   JW  is right - there is a serious speed deficiency amongst our loosies amd Messam is ten times better than Sloth.

I am realistic and fair in my assessment and base my assessment on actual performances  - not prejudice.     

Wardad

I want to answer the cricket question first and deal with the Beeno senseless nect.

I also believe that they should use a third man, but most captains nowadays prfer to set a more attacking field and third man does not really fit into that bill.

Beeno

You referred  to the loosies in the Ellis Park test - but be realistic.   While two of them were reasonably successful - the third one buggered up badly - both in defence and in ball recovery - needless to say it was Sloth.    Two tries that could have been prevented was given away as a result.

The upshot - the loosie combination  was not functioning well enough as a combination.  End of story.

Beeno

I was reacting to the remarks you made about the loosies at Ellis Park - not the EOYT and especially not on the hype during the EOYT.   Statistically Sloth produced nothing of substance, yet he was written up as if he could walk on water.  His ball carries meant squat - and his tackling  - especially in the French test was way below par.   You can have him - but he is part of the reason why w will never win a test against the  AB's.  

Beeno

You still don't get it - now do you?  It was the AB loosies that beat us hollow in the Ellis Park test - that is a fact of life.   There are tight five deficiencies in the AB team - but you cannot correct that by nullifying your loosies advantage.

The AB's do not have reserves of quality props and their locks are iffy in tight situations.   They have no hookers to write home about either.    But it certainly would not help their cause by playing a prop as a loosie like we are doing with Sloth.   In the end our Sloth runs out of steam - misses tackles and falls over his own feet out of sheer clumsiness.

We have a couple of players that needs replacement - Morne leads that number, but Sloth, Fourie and Bakkies are in close attendance.   Replace those four players and the Springboks will be no 1 - with them we never will be.   

 Bean Brain hope yr boys take it easy on the Xmas pudding as fitness let you down this year...it wins games...no one is fitter than the Kiwis as demonstrated at Ellis Park when yr boys were huffing and puffing and just could'nt keep up...even yr wonder boy Bismark was tuckered out by halftime...Springboks should've taken that game but our boys are just too fit...did i mention fitness wins games???...

 Beeno

A very hot Christmas day here and very humid.  Will have to go into the pool shortly.

I do not agree with you about the side fitness issue.   If Ellis Park was the norm - the Springboks were down and out at the end - where two late AB tries decided the result.  Not the fittest team at all.

I think that 2014 will be a better year for us - but there are provisos and if those are sorted out - we should get over the winning line.   The long and the short is that the two players who cost us dearly at Ellis Park (Morne and Alberts) be replaced.   I would also say that Du Toit should replace Juandre Kruger and that Meyer should forget about the ancient Bakkies Botha.   Lastly the no 14 position should be sorted out - I still prefer Engelbrecht to Fourie and hope that Super 15 would sort out that issue.